Well, the voters in North County have clearly spoken and soundly defeated the new Willapa Harbor Hospital bond proposal. In fact, the bond was overwhelmingly defeated!

The big question now is, what will the hospital board and administration do? Did they hear the people’s concerns? Did they get the message? Do they respect the majority? Will they reassess their hospital plans or will they simply rerun the same bond at a future election?

Through their votes, the vast majority of residents sent a very clear message to the WHH. This bond proposal was too expensive and the promises made are not reasonable. The WHH says that they are operating with “our best interests” in mind. Well, it’s now time to prove it! The voters have spoken! Give the local residents a more reasonable alternative to improving our hospital, one that they can afford!

It is important that, moving forward, the WHH board and administration listen to the voters and truly act in our collective best interests!

JERRY BOWMAN

South Bend